Typically, all climate control functions for a vehicle passenger cabin are provided by the vehicle's heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning (HVAC) system, with conditioned air being delivered to the passenger cabin via ducting and registers routed through the vehicle instrument panel. The efficiency and register air output rate for conditioned air are highly impacted by the length/diameter of that ducting. In turn, the perceived efficiency of the climate control system is highly impacted by individual passenger preferences as well as the passenger's position in the vehicle relative to an air register. In conditions of extreme temperature, a passenger may be dissatisfied with the cooling/heating provided by the passenger cabin climate control system alone.
Further, typically vehicle climate control systems prioritize transfer of air into the passenger cabin. While measures are provided for exhausting air from the passenger cabin, the rate of air exhaustion may be insufficient to meet passenger desires in the event of elevated levels of environmental contaminants such as unpleasant odors, particulates such as cigarette smoke or pollen, volatile organic compound outgassing, etc. Air exhaustion may be significantly increased by the simple expedient of opening a vehicle window, but the uncontrolled increase in the rate of air entering the vehicle along with attendant noise and further particulate contamination from ambient air can further contribute to passenger dissatisfaction.
Accordingly, there is identified a need in the art for devices for supplementing traditional vehicle climate control systems. The devices should be economical, versatile, and efficient, and should integrate easily into existing vehicle components whereby the already limited packaging space available in the modern motor vehicle is not significantly impacted.